THE 44th PRESIDENT, before boarding THE OBAMA EXPRESS: "Let's make sure this election is not the END of what we do to change America, but just the beginning."

BULLETIN -- Barack Obama of Illinois kicks off his inaugural weekend in Philadelphia, birthplace of American independence, en route to Washington's Union Station by train, with stops in Wilmington, Del, and Baltimore: "We are the heirs of that first band of patriots ... ordinary men and women who refused to give up, ... and who somehow believed that they had the power to make the world anew. That's the spirit that we must reclaim today. The American Revolution did not end when the British guns fell silent. It was never something to be won only on a battlefield. ... The American Revolution was, and remains, an ongoing struggle in the minds and the hearts of the people to live up to our founding creed. So starting now, let's take up, in our own lives, the work of perfecting our union. Let's build a government that's responsive to the people. ... Let all of us do our part to rebuild this country. Let's make sure this election is not the END of what we do to change America, but just the beginning. [Applause] Join me in this effort, join one another in this effort. And together, mindful of our proud history and hopeful for the future, let's seek a better world in our time. Thank you, Philadelphia -- love you guys."

AP White House Correspondent Jennifer Loven: “President-elect Barack Obama, tracing the train route Abraham Lincoln took nearly a century and a half ago, undertook the final leg of his inaugural journey to the nation's capital Saturday, pledging to reclaim America's spirit but also warning of steep challenges facing the country.”

Bloomberg’s Julianna Goldman: “President-elect Barack Obama said the U.S. is facing historic challenges and appealed to ‘our better angels’ to revive the American dream that everyone can make a better life.”

AFP’s Stephen Collinson: “Barack Obama exhorted Americans Saturday to unite in a 'new declaration of independence' from bigotry, small thinking and ideology, as he set off to Washington to take power.”

UPDATE: ABC's ANN COMPTON reports -- Obama "Loves" Bush's Decor in Oval Office: "Don't look for any new curtains or furnishings in the Oval Office on Inauguration Day. In fact, adviser Valerie Jarrett tells ABC News, President-elect Obama 'loves' the sunburst carpet that President Bush and Mrs. Bush designed for the office. During a photo-op last week with former presidents, former President Bill Clinton raved about the rug. Jarrett says, 'President-elect Obama says the same thing. He just loves that rug.' Jarrett also added that it's too early to think about redecorating the Oval Office."

BREAKING, from Wall Street Journal: “William Dudley, who runs the markets desk at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is the likely front-runner to become next president of the bank after another leading candidate for the job, Fed governor Kevin Warsh, withdrew from the race.”

Good Saturday morning. POOL REPORT from USA Today’s Mimi Hall: “PEOTUS left the Sheraton Center City at 9:50 a.m., headed for Philadelphia's 30th Street Station for a speech to supporters before he boards the train. According to local motorcycle police, it is 9 degrees here. No word yet on whether there will be any birthday celebration for Michelle Obama on board the train. She is 45 years old today.”

SHOUT TO … Dave Cusack and the Events & Ceremonies folks at the Presidential Inaugural Committee. Dave manages the 200+ advance people from the campaign that have really pulled all these events together. It's all the advance people we saw out on the road, and they rarely get the credit they deserve.

SCOOP – AP’s Charles Babington, in his “First 100 Days” story for Sunday papers: Obama “plans to address government ethics standards, including rules barring high-ranking government officials from going quickly into lobbying jobs, said his spokesman Robert Gibbs ‘We will have more to say about that at the very beginning,’ Gibbs said in an interview. But the biggest priority, Gibbs said, ‘is getting this economy back on track.’ The multibillion-dollar stimulus bill should help do that, he said, as it paves the way for legislative action that once seemed more problematic.”

NBC’s Chuck Todd, co-author of the indispensable new paperback “How Barack Obama Won: A State-by-State Guide to the Historic 2008 Presidential Election,” on Jay Leno last night: “They’re talking about one porta-potty per 6,000 people. … That scares me a little bit.”

LENO: “And you feel bad for that 6,000th person.”

THE BIG IDEA – OBAMA COURTS REPUBLICANS -- Politico’s Jonathan Martin: “Behind the scenes, Obama and his team are … courting prominent Republicans and conservatives through frequent phone calls, e-mails and private sit-downs. … ‘I think he’s done an extremely good job so far,’ said Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), who received a call from the president-elect last week. … Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), the House Minority Whip, has met with Obama and is in frequent contact with Rahm Emanuel, the House member turned presidential chief of staff, via cell phone and BlackBerry. … Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who just got back from the Middle East with Joe Biden, was with McCain and the president-elect in Chicago at the post-election meeting and met again with Obama Wednesday for about 45 minutes. … According to Obama officials, the president-elect has personally reached out to Senate GOP leaders, Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Jon Kyl (Ariz.), as well as key committee ranking members Charles Grassley (Iowa) and Judd Gregg (N.H.) and such moderates as Olympia Snowe (Maine).”

DRIVING THE DAY – AFP, “Crises shadow Obama on his slow train to power,” By Stephen Collinson in Philadelphia: “Barack Obama warned of ‘difficult days’ ahead before heralding his new era of change Saturday by rolling back the years on a pre-inaugural slow train to Washington. Shadowed by the sheaf of economic and military crises facing Americans, Obama will ride the rails from Philadelphia, the cradle of US independence to marbled Union Station less than a mile from where he will be sworn in Tuesday. In his last radio and online address before becoming America's first African American president, Obama marveled at the political rite which will take place before a vast crowd and the eyes of the world. ‘For the forty-third time, we will execute the peaceful transfer of power from one President to the next,’ Obama said. ‘Difficult days are upon us, and even more difficult days lie ahead.’”

TOP CLICK – White House press secretary Dana Perino began her sayonara briefing with a montage of action shots of reporters, including Bill Plante, who famously works crossword puzzles in the front row when briefings bog down. Her narration: “Bill is looking for a five-letter word for ‘uninterested.’ (Laughter.) And, Terry Moran [glancing sideways at Steve Holland’s notes], eyes on your own paper, please. (Laughter.) But at least he's awake -- unlike Peter Baker.”

FROM DANA’S BRIEFING: “I wish my successor, Robert Gibbs, all the very best. Please go easy on him -- for a week. (Laughter.) And before I say goodbye, I will take your questions one last time. (Laughter and applause.) … I don't think that I would always be asked about my feelings about liberal bias in the media if there wasn't any liberal bias in the media. If it was a moot question, then we wouldn't always have the discussion. But I will say this about the reporters … in this room: … I give you a nine in terms of fairness and … working with us and then listening to us.”

ON ADVICE FOR GIBBS: “For Robert? Well, he doesn't need a lot of advice from me. … It's really good to get new energy and new blood in here. And I think that they've shown that they're a good, professional organization, and he'll have, I think, absolutely no problems. He won't miss a beat when he gets up here.”

COMING ATTRACTIONS -- from release: “The Presidential Inaugural Committee and The Trust for the National Mall (TNM) today released a public service announcement which will air on jumbo screens along the National Mall during inaugural festivities, including the Opening Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday and before the swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday. The thirty-second PSA raises awareness about the current disrepair of the National Mall and urges Americans to help contribute to the restoration of this national treasure. ‘President-elect Obama believes that the National Mall is every American’s front yard and that each of us can play a role in helping restore and preserve it for future generations. Opening the Mall has been a priority for us as we hold the most open and access able Inauguration in history, and we are proud to broadcast the Trust for the National Mall’s PSA to help raise awareness of the needs of this iconic park,’ said Josh Earnest, PIC Communications Director. … The PSA ‘Action’ features clips from John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address, Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I Have A Dream’ speech and moving images of the great monuments and memorials along the National Mall. Juxtaposed against that are pictures of disrepair and areas in need of improvement. The PSA closes with an appeal to spectators to log on to www.AmericasFrontYard.org to learn more or directly text a contribution to 74471. The Trust for the National Mall has posted the PSA on its website www.nationalmall.org.”

SCRIPT FOR “ACTION” – male voiceover: “Where you stand today, giants have stood to deliver calls of action. Millions have raised their voices to call for change. The ideas that guide our country have taken root. This is hallowed ground, but America’s front yard is in disrepair. From where you stand, you can make a difference. Help restore it by supporting the Trust for the National Mall. Text ‘Mall’ to 74471 or visit americasfrontyard.org.”

TOP RELEASE – “[A]s part of an Inauguration for all Americans, the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Committee announced the spiritual leaders from the diverse array of our nation's religious traditions who will participate in the National Prayer Service on Wednesday … The National Prayer Service, a tradition dating back to the Inauguration of George Washington, will be held at the National Cathedral at the conclusion of the inaugural activities. The service will include scripture readings, prayers, hymns and blessings delivered by faith leaders from across the United States. ‘President-elect Obama's faith is a central part of his life and he will begin the first full day of his Administration with a service of interfaith prayer and reflection,’ said Presidential Inaugural Committee Communications Director Josh Earnest. ‘The National Prayer Service, which will embody the themes of tolerance, unity and understanding, is a worship service for all Americans.’ The National Prayer Service will include a traditional prayer for civil leaders, a prayer for the nation, a selection by the Washington, D.C.-based Children of the Gospel Children's Choir, and, for the first time, feature a sermon delivered by a woman, … Sharon E. Watkins, General Minister and President, Disciples of Christ (Christian Church).”

PULLING BACK THE CAMERA: We’re hoping to draw on the collective wisdom of Playbook readers and will print the most thought-provoking answers, for the benefit of all (anonymously or with credit, as you wish): As a symbolic turning point and momentous, galvanizing event for the country, the inauguration of Barack Obama is in the top THREE events in American history? FIVE? 10? 20? We clearly have the freeing of the slaves and 9/11. What else measures up? Thank you for sharing your insight. If you’ve written on this question, we’ll link to you.

THE PRESIDENT-ELECT, IN PARADE MAGAZINE THIS WEEKEND -- “Dear Malia and Sasha, … When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me -- about how I'd make my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want. But then the two of you came into my world with all your curiosity and mischief and those smiles that never fail to fill my heart and light up my day. And suddenly, all my big plans for myself didn't seem so important anymore. I soon found that the greatest joy in my life was the joy I saw in yours. And I realized that my own life wouldn't count for much unless I was able to ensure that you had every opportunity for happiness and fulfillment in yours. In the end, girls, that's why I ran for President: because of what I want for you and for every child in this nation. … I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have. That's why I've taken our family on this great adventure. I am so proud of both of you. I love you more than you can ever know. And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House. Love, Dad.”

THE MOMENT – CNN’s John King interviewed the President-elect yesterday in a Cleveland-area warehouse, with a forklift as a backdrop, after what Wolf Blitzer called “a campaign-style event in Ohio to sell his massive plan to get the economy out of a ditch.”

OBAMA: “Well, I'm going to try to keep in together. But I will tell you that during the convention, there's a moment up there at the end of my convention speech where I talk about Dr. King and what he accomplished. And the first time we practiced it, I had to stop. I started choking up, because, you know, what you start thinking about is not just your own personal journey. But you think about all the women who walked, instead of riding the bus, out in Montgomery and Birmingham, and what a moment like this would mean to them. And what's remarkable is, some of them are still alive. They're still there. And some of them are going to be standing there at the inauguration.”

THE NARRATIVE -- BLOOMBERG TV’s “Last Word” segment on “Political Capital with Al Hunt” – Margaret Carlson: “I’m wondering if for the first time, other than when he’s with his family, Barack Obama shows emotion. I know I will.”

Kate O’Beirne: “Well, we all have our lead already. There’s no need to listen to this speech, right? The lead is that picture of Barack Obama taking that oath, raising his hand, and taking that oath. It doesn’t matter what he says. That’s it.”

Al Hunt: “On the other hand, I think this is one of those politicians that is able to rise to that occasion and I suspect we’re going to have -- maybe not a Lincoln or an FDR speech, but we’re going to have a speech that will be one for the ages, too.”

POOL REPORT: Debra Lee, the Chairman and CEO of BET, hosted an intimate dinner at her home (formerly Jack Kent Cooke’s house) in Massachusetts Avenue Heights last night to fete the BET Honors awardees and kick off Inauguration weekend. According to a friend of Playbook, in attendance were the honorees: Magic Johnson, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, B. Smith and Judith Jameson (the other honorees, Mary J Blige and Tyler Perry, couldn’t make it). Also there: Charlie Cook, Rep. Mel Watt, Rep. Maxine Waters, Clyburn Chief of Staff Yelberton Watkins, Oprah’s best friend Gayle King, Obama Chief Counsel Michael Strautmanis, Obama Domestic Policy chief Melody Barnes, and CNN’s Suzanne Malveaux. The BET Honors awards ceremony is tonight at the Warner Theater. The awards ceremony will air on BET in February during Black History Month.

QUIP – A Republican wag, upon seeing the frenzy surrounding the President-elect’s visit to The Washington Post: “He’s been looking for a place of worship in Washington. Looks like he found one.”

ADAM LEVINE, a thoughtful former “Hardball” producer and Bush White House official, on the hours ahead: "This weekend is part Super Bowl (biggest event for political junkies and this one is SURE to be a great game), part Mardi Gras (most of the Obama Team are seasoned in different places and they know what they are in for … so this is the LAST party before they really have to work their [tails] off for anywhere between 2 and 8 years) and part amazing funeral (for my Republican brothers and sisters....most are happy because they rightly feel it was a great effort and some happy because the suffering is over...but it is emotional).”

FOR DEMOCRATS, AND REPUBLICANS WHO STILL HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR, a clickable Oval Office called HelpBushPack.com. (Mouse over the Constitution, poised in the shredder, and you get a TIME magazine cover featuring the President-elect.)

WORTH THE CLICK – SLATE publishes a gallery of the best of “Eight years of Slate's presidential caricatures: In the course of George W. Bush's two terms in the White House, Slate has published hundreds of illustrated takes on the president, ranging from a clueless simian to a smug imperialist to a Mount Rushmore also-ran. Here are 32 of our favorites from that collection.”

PUNDIT PREP I – AP Washington Bureau Chief RON FOURNIER writes for Monday papers on “Obama's view an ode to America's promise”: “When Barack Obama mounts the podium to take the oath and deliver his inaugural address, when he looks out upon the National Mall and hundreds of thousands of bright and hopeful faces, he will see so much more: the symbols of a nation forever struggling to live up to its promise. … Start first with that memorial to the first president, the 555-foot Washington Monument. … Symbols of … growth litter the District of Columbia landscape. From Obama's perch at the west end of the Capitol, the new president will see steel-and-stone reminders of how the United States has evolved in good times and bad — through wars, recessions and the sort of wrenching social change we endure today. There, directly in Obama's line of sight, is the World War II Memorial … A bit farther west, hidden by a thicket of trees, lies the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial. … Now, follow Obama's gaze to the north — to the White House. Consider the fact that Washington planner Pierre L'Enfant rented slaves from nearby owners to dig its foundation. White House designer James Hoben used some of his slave carpenters to build his icon to democracy. Slaves helped build the Capitol, too. And the ground upon which those multitudes will gather to hear Obama's address? The National Mall was the location of some of the most infamous slave markets in the East. When Obama looks straight ahead, deep into the western horizon, he'll see the highest reaches of Arlington National Ceremony. … At the opposite end of the Mall from Obama stands the Lincoln Memorial — a ‘temple,’ says its inscription, to honor the nation's Great Emancipator . … Five score years later, Martin Luther King Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and called the Emancipation Proclamation a ‘great beacon light of hope’ for blacks.”

PUNDIT PREP II – Reuters’ Ed Stoddard in Dallas, who covers religion and politics: “ANALYSIS -- Obama must work for compromise in US culture war: President-elect Barack Obama hopes to reach across the political divide, but the uproar over the preachers at his inauguration celebrations show just how wide some of those divisions are in America. Some gay rights activists have expressed outrage at Obama's choice of California pastor Rick Warren to give the invocation prayer at his inauguration on Tuesday because of Warren's opposition to gay marriage. And some conservatives are up in arms over openly gay Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson's role in an earlier part of the celebrations. But political analysts and activists say many Americans appear weary of the ‘culture war’ battles over issues like gay marriage, and Obama may find some safe ground in the middle.”

PUNDIT PREP III – Bloomberg’s Hans Nichols, “Obama Inaugural Strains Lincoln Comparisons While Inviting Them: Barack Obama's inauguration is dedicated to the proposition that all presidencies are not created equal. … For most of the 144 years since Lincoln's death, presidents of all political persuasions have tried to enlist Lincoln's reputation for honesty and courage in support of their own ambitions. … Still, the election of America's first black president, from the same state as the leader who issued the Emancipation Proclamation, gives Obama a stronger claim than most predecessors to Lincoln's legacy, says Tom Schwartz, a historian at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois. There's a ‘very clear thread that connects the two,’ says Schwartz, who describes Obama's history-making election as "a kind of bookend to Lincoln's legacy in the Civil War." Obama will be sworn in at noon on Jan. 20, just three weeks before the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth on Feb. 12, 1809, an anniversary to be accompanied by museum exhibits, ceremonies, and new books planned long before Obama's victory. ‘There's a serendipity to it,’ Schwartz says. … Both presidents studied law and bested better-known U.S. senators from New York for their parties' presidential nominations. Each man rocketed from relative obscurity on the strength of oratory, in Obama's 2004 Democratic National Convention keynote address and Lincoln's 1860 anti-slavery speech at New York's Cooper Union. … Some efforts to link Obama and Lincoln may now be out of Obama's control. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies picked ‘A New Birth of Freedom’ as the official inauguration theme, lifting a phrase from the Gettysburg Address. For the post-inauguration lunch, the committee is serving dishes that Lincoln is believed to have liked, including a seafood stew, duck and pheasant.”

ALSO DRIVING THE CONVERSATION:

--WashPost A1, “For Obama, a Party Tempered by Tough Times,” By Alec MacGillis: “When a train pulls out of Philadelphia today carrying President-elect Barack Obama on a symbolic journey to Washington, it will set off a four-day inaugural celebration of unprecedented ambition that has been calibrated to strike a balance between marking a moment many thought would never come and setting a tone that suits the sober economic times. The event's planners want to conjure optimism about the country's ability to rebound from a deep downturn, yet do not want to create unrealistic expectations for Obama -- a tension that will dominate the early months of his administration. So they have tried to take into account the reality of the times while satisfying the desire to celebrate the first black president in the nation's history and the first Democratic commander in chief in eight years. ‘It is a celebration, so it should be a joyous and festive moment. But this is also a serious moment for the country, so we're constantly going to be trying to communicate both those elements,’ said Jim Margolis, a consultant who produced Obama's campaign ads and is helping to oversee the inaugural planning. ‘We didn't go out with an objective to say, “When an act walks out on stage there can't be scenery or it has to be austere, and we're only going to let one person with an acoustic guitar sing into a microphone.” There will be strong, well-performed events, which is appropriate in an inaugural,’ he said. ‘What we're trying to do . . . is show that we're cognizant of what the nation is facing but that we also make sure people are provided a wonderful entertainment experience.’”

--Wall Street Journal banner, “U.S. Plots New Phase in Banking Bailout”: “The U.S. government, recognizing that the banking crisis is far larger than originally thought, is laying the groundwork for a second phase of its rescue attempt, with plans to purge bad assets that are paralyzing the financial system. Officials at the Treasury, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., in consultation with the incoming Obama administration, are discussing a plan to create a government bank that would buy up the bad investments and loans that are behind the huge losses that U.S. banks continue to report, say government officials. Also under consideration is an additional and giant government guarantee of banks' assets against further losses. The discussions, which are intensifying, show how the rapid deterioration of bank assets is outpacing the government's rescue efforts. Banks are now struggling not only with the real-estate investments that sparked the crisis, but also with the car loans, credit-card debt and other consumer debt that have taken a hit with the faltering economy. The latest government proposals are aimed at attracting private capital back to the banking system, efforts that have until now largely failed.”

--N.Y. Times: “News Analysis: Remarks on Torture Could Lead to Legal Changes,” By Scott Shane: “This week, at his confirmation hearing, Eric H. Holder Jr., the attorney general-designate, … noted that waterboarding had been used to torment prisoners during the Inquisition, by the Japanese in World War II and in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge. ‘We prosecuted our own soldiers for using it in Vietnam,’ Mr. Holder said. ‘Waterboarding is torture.’ In the view of many historians and legal authorities, Mr. Holder was merely admitting the obvious. He was agreeing with the clear position of his boss-to-be, President-elect Barack Obama, and he was giving an answer that almost certainly was necessary to win confirmation. Yet his statement, amounting to an admission that the United States may have committed war crimes, opens the door to an unpredictable train of legal and political consequences. It could potentially require a full-scale legal investigation, complicate prosecutions of individuals suspected of committing terrorism and mire the new administration in just the kind of backward look that Mr. Obama has said he would like to avoid.”

--L.A. Times A1, “HER OWN PARTY LINE -- Feinstein rises, but faces a tough choice: With a Democrat returning to the White House, California's senior senator is in a top position (and characteristically butting heads with her party). But she might leave it all to run for governor,” By Mark Z. Barabak reporting from San Francisco and Richard Simon reporting from Washington: “As Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats celebrate their political ascendancy, Dianne Feinstein is front and center. And that is not always a welcome thing for members of her own party. In recent days Feinstein has sent an unmistakable signal to the president-elect and the rest of Washington: California's senior senator will not be taken for granted or hew to the party line simply because that might seem proper at the rosy dawn of a new Democratic era. … At age 75, facing perhaps the last big political decision of her decades-long career, Feinstein finds herself in a familiar place: crosswise with members of her own party and enveloped in a swirl of will-she-or-won't-she speculation about mounting another run for governor. The choice is not easy. Feinstein has long dreamed of holding the state's top job, and if she runs in 2010, she would be the instant front-runner. But running, and winning, would mean walking away from the chairmanship of the Senate Intelligence Committee -- a job never before held by a woman -- and giving up more clout than she has ever enjoyed on Capitol Hill.”

***DEETS ON THE HIP-HOP INAUGURAL BALL: The hip-hop cultural movement’s filtration into mainstream America has promoted integration into the American living room and weakened indifference to the idea and promise of diversity within popular culture, ultimately allowing for the transformation of American society. Please join us for an unbelievable evening of music, history and culture...

Attire: Black Tie All proceeds go to benefit the charitable works of The Hip-Hop Summit Network; a non-profit, non-partisan organization. Limited Tickets Still Available Now: $500 www.hiphopinaugural.org www.hsan.org

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Authors:

About The Author

Mike Allen is the chief White House correspondent for POLITICO. He comes to us from Time magazine where he was their White House correspondent. Prior to that, Allen spent six years at The Washington Post, where he covered President Bush's first term, Capitol Hill, campaign finance, and the Bush, Gore and Bradley campaigns of 2000. Before turning to national politics, he covered schools and local governments in rural counties outside Fredericksburg, Va., for The Free Lance-Star, then wrote about Doug Wilder, Oliver North, Chuck Robb and the Bobbitts for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, where he nurtured police sources on overnight ride-alongs through housing projects. Allen also covered Mayor Giuliani, the Connecticut statehouse and the wacky rich of Greenwich for The New York Times. Before moving to The Times, he did stints in the Richmond and Alexandria bureaus of The Washington Post. Allen grew up in Orange County, Calif., and has a B.A. from Washington and Lee University, where he majored in politics and journalism.